Well covered on the regular dividend. The regular dividend of at least $6.50 for 2026 takes ~74% of raised AFFO guidance of $8.75–$8.90 a share, with Q2 AFFO of $2.40 a share up 8.1% year over year. Leverage is 2.9× net debt/EBITDA, among the lowest in company history, and the regular quarterly rate was raised to $1.65 from $1.60 in Q3 2026. The yield shown is the regular dividend only: management expects a year-end special dividend to distribute 100% of taxable income, as in past years, and that special is not in the headline yield.
Key risk: Advertising demand is cyclical, so AFFO and the taxable-income-driven special dividend both fall if advertiser budgets pull back, even though the regular dividend is currently well covered.
Changes if: AFFO guidance is cut below the level that covers the $6.50 regular dividend at 80%, or leverage rises toward the 3.5–4.0× target-range top while acquisitions accelerate past $200 million for the year.
- ✓AFFO coverage check Regular dividend ~74% of guided AFFO midpoint passes (<80%); Q2 AFFO was $2.40/share. The expected year-end special dividend is undeclared and unquantified, so total-distribution payout cannot yet be graded.
- ✓Leverage check 2.9× net debt/EBITDA passes (<6×) on the credit-facility EBITDA definition; interest coverage 7.1× over the 12 months to June 30, 2026. Not EBITDAre — billboard REIT, no EBITDAre reported.
- ✓Raise history check Regular quarterly rate $1.55 (2025) → $1.60 → $1.65 (Q3 2026); the 2020 distribution cut ($3.84 → $2.50 total) is more than five years ago and is disclosed here, not graded as a current fail.
What this grade doesn't say: It screens the dividend only — covered, real, compounding. It says nothing about valuation or price: a well-covered payer can still be overpriced, and its price can still fall.